Kabul, Afghanistan – The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) announced the installment of an e-Attendance System at the Ministry of Higher Education (MoHE) to enhance transparency of employee attendance and payroll.

The system, consisting of six e-Attendance biometric timekeeping devices, a computer server, uninterrupted power supply equipment, networking devices, and monitoring cameras, will improve management, productivity, and accountability and solve other human resources challenges.

Previously, the ministry’s employees registered their attendance manually and stood in queues to sign in and out using attendance books. Better accuracy in keeping staff attendance records decreases the chances of procedural errors, including unauthorized leave and unplanned overtime, said Minister of Higher Education Farida Momand during an event to announce the new technology.

“We have taken yet another step toward good governance, with an e-Attendance system that will make the attendance process transparent and avoid the long queue and the trouble of signing and stamping,” Momand said.

Speaking from the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, USAID Mission Director Herbie Smith said the new system would help the Ministry of Higher Education increase data accuracy and improve accountability. “Today, the new biometric attendance system represents a remarkable step towards public sector accountability and good governance in Afghanistan,” Smith said.

In the near future, this system will be connected to the Higher Education Management Information System (HEMIS), which will expand more electronic governance systems to further productivity and accountability at the ministry. To ensure the sustainability of this system, USAID trained Ministry staff to operate the machines and database.

The President’s Special Representative on Reform and Good Governance Ahmad Zia Masood, the Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock Assadullah Zamir and the Head of the Independent Administrative Reform and Civil Service Commission Dr. Ahmad Mushahid also attended the event and spoke about the benefits of e-Attendance and administrative reforms in Afghan government organizations.

Since 2002, USAID has invested over a billion dollars to improve education in Afghanistan. Last year, USAID worked with the Ministry to improve the efficiency and integrity of the Kankor exam through the introduction of an electronic test scoring system.

• Press Release - USAID and Ministry of Higher Education Ensure Accountability through New e-Attendance System (Dari)